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Like most parts of India, festivals in Kerala are an
integral part of the social and cultural structure of the
state and festival time is the best time to plan one's
travel to Kerala. In Kerala, every community, every religion
has something to celebrate about all through out the year.
Thrissur Pooram is the most spectacular festival of Kerala
that tourist must experience during their holidays in
Kerala. Introduced by the Maharaja of erstwhile Kochi state,
Sakthan Thampuran, Thrissur Pooram is celebrated in Medom
(April-May). The Thrissur Pooram festival in Kerala parades
the fulgent faces of Kerala culture. With every passing year
Thrissur Pooram, the temple festival, attracts large masses
of devotees and spectators to Kerala. |
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Of the groups displaying their artistic prowess in the
Pooram, the prominent are Paramekkavu and Thiruvambadi. When
Paremekkavu and Thiruvambadi vie each other for their best
performance, the connoisseurs of festivals are blessed with
the rare chance to enjoy the art and culture of Kerala.
These temples organise impressive, awe-inspiring processions
starting from Krishna Temple and Devi Temple. On the day
before the closing of the pooram the groups enter the
Vadakumnatha Temple through the western gate and come out
through the southern gate to parade, face to face.
Caparisoned elephants and the exchange of parasols are the
other virtual feasts to eyes.
The hours-long dazzling fire works submerge the Thrissur
city of Kerala in an ocean of colour. The consummate
pyrotechnics exhibited by the two-temple groups paint the
Thrissur sky with flamboyant pictures. What unfurls in the
dark sky will be a rich tapestry. The marvelous as well as
magical effect of the Panchavadyam, a combination of five
percussion and wind instruments, is a sight that tourist on
vacations in Kerala will cherish for a lifetime. Although
this grand festival is known as Thrissur Pooram, it is in
fact the conclusion of the eight-day Utsavam of nine
temples.
The commissioning of elephants and parasols is done in the
utmost secrecy by each party to excel the other. Commencing
in the early hours of the morning, the celebrations last
till the break of dawn, the next day. |
